December 2021 Devotional: Still pointing to the Promise

 

Luke 2:10-11

 10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 

 

"The holiday season is different this year. It’s hard to believe that Christmas is about 56 hours away. The energy in the world is so dark right now. Really dark," my friend Faye tweeted a few days ago
 

“Well, that was how it was when Jesus came into the world. It was dark politically, socially, and spiritually. I personally believe we’re getting ready for a major revival,” I responded.
 

Another woman shared that her church was EMPTY for Christmas Eve services.  She said that we need God more than ever before and people stayed home.

My response again was that we are being positioned for a major revival. 

During this season of Advent, I have been participating in a 30 Day Bible Study called Pointing to the Promise that gives a Biblical view of what happened in Bethlehem over 2000 years ago. 

The Non-Hallmark version of Jesus’ birth

The first observation I made with the Pointing to the Promise study is that the Christmas story isn’t pretty nor is it neat and tidy like a Hallmark movie or nativity scene.  It’s actually quite dark and horrifying in some parts BUT GOD as always is faithful!

We will start with the virgin birth part of the story.  Mary was ready to marry Joseph and then God came to interrupt their plans.  Not only does God interrupt their plans, now they have to live with these uncomfortable circumstances.  Unmarried, pregnant, and telling people that she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit.

Some of you are probably way more spiritual than me but I guarantee if Mary and Joseph told me that story, I would have been more than a little skeptical. 

Next, let’s talk about the world that Jesus was born into. The citizens were under a psycho leader,  King Herod. This man had his own wife and two sons MURDERED because he felt he couldn’t trust them.  If that wasn’t bad enough, once he heard about this new king he ordered that all the 2-year-old boys and under be murdered.   

In addition to this, let’s not forget that the nation of Israel was under Roman occupation.  So their socio-political system was evil and oppressive

Lastly, God had been silent for 400 years. His people had not received a word from the Lord in all that time. The religious leaders were wearing down the people with all of their rules and regulations.  There had been the promise of a Messiah and King to free the people but he hadn’t come yet.  

Jesus was not born into a world of joy and happiness. He was born into a world of chaos and darkness much like we are facing today.

The thrill of hope…A Weary World Rejoices

My favorite Christmas song is, O Holy Night and my favorite line is, “A thrill of hope” a Weary World rejoices for yonder stands a new and glorious morn.

The world was weary but there were those who BELIEVED that God would be faithful to His promise to send the Savior!  Among them were Simeon and Anna. There was much rejoicing as they laid eyes on the long-awaited Savior of Israel.

Luke 2:25-38
God fulfills his promise to Simeon

25 And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.

“Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation 31Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, 32 A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.”

Anna, the Prophetess

36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; 37 and this woman was a widow [i]of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. 38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to [j]the Lord and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
 

These last two years many of us have grown weary. I maintain that we need to be like Anna and Simeon and not miss the thrill of hope when we see Jesus!  

Practical Application: Don’t Fumble 

Earlier this year, I had the privilege to teach a class to the youth at my church. My lesson was called, “Don’t Fumble on the 1-yard line”.  

My central scripture was Galatians 6:9 

 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. (NLT)

In the last 2 years, many among us in the Body of Christ have grown weary and discouraged. Empty churches on Christmas Eve and on many Sundays are proof of this.

My encouragement to you this Christmas is to be like Simeon and Anna and hang on until we see the Glory of the Lord Among us!

Action Step: Believe God’s Promises

One of the most encouraging aspects of the Pointing to the Promise Bible Study was seeing how many prophecies came to pass. Every minute detail of the prophecies in scripture regarding the birth of the Savior was fulfilled.

Even when it didn’t make any sense, God was so exact in the way His plan for Jesus’ birth was carried out. The son of God was born in less than stellar accommodations and was from the town of Nazareth which doesn't appear to be where "the cream of the crop" came from (Can anything good come from Nazareth? John 1:45-46)

This encouraged me to believe that God has a great plan for how he plans to bring revival to pass in our day even when it doesn’t look very encouraging to us.  God is so exact down to the minute detail of how he is going to bring about a great ingathering of souls.  We just have to be like Mary and Joseph and decide to press forward no matter how foolish we look to everyone else. We have to be like Simeon and Anna and not give up until we see Jesus!

We're still pointing to the promise of a great Harvest and Jesus returning to take us home with Him!

 

Prayer 

Lord, we thank you for bringing us a Savior that has saved us from our sins and given us the chance to be your sons and daughters.  We pray to be faithful like Mary, Joseph, Simeon, and Anna and not miss our hour of visitation.  We pray that just as Jesus came as a light in the darkness in Bethlehem all those years ago, that you would come again to our dark world.  We pray to stand firm in your promises! 

“Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Merry Christmas!